Lemon Spaghetti

I needed a side dish to go with the Garlicky Baked shrimp I made and I came across this. It was quick and I had all the ingredients on hand. Well, almost. I used parsley instead of basil. And I didn't use the full 1/2 cup of lemon juice either. I ended up using 2 lemons which gave me about 1/3 cup of juice. It was the perfect amount. Anymore and I think it would have been too sour.

1 pound spaghetti - I used Ronzoni whole wheat spaghetti
2/3 cup olive oil
2/3 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice, about three lemons (I used two)
salt and pepper
1 tbsp. lemon zest
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil leaves (I used parsley)

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, whisk the oil, Parmesan and lemon juice in a large bowl to blend.

Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Toss the pasta with the lemon sauce and the reserved cooking liquid, adding 1/4 cup at a time as needed to moisten. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with lemon zest and chopped basil/parsley (I added these to the sauce and blended them all together beforehand).

Garlicky Baked Shrimp

Another day, another shrimp dish. I love cooking with shrimp, you can throw together a dish pretty quickly. And Saturday I wanted something quick since we were painting and trying to get more stuff organized at the house. I found this on the Real Simple website.

1 pound raw, peeled and deveined medium or large shrimp
4 cloves sliced garlic
2 tbsp. white wine
salt and pepper
1/4 cup softened butter (I used half butter and half olive oil)
1/4 cup panko bread crumbs (I used whatever bread crumbs I had in the cupboard and I had to use more than 1/4 cup to get the consistency I wanted)
2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

In a baking dish, combine the shrimp, garlic and white wine. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with a mixture of the butter/olive oil, bread crumbs and parsley.

Bake at 425 degrees F until shrimp are opaque, 15-18 minutes.

Banana-(Walnut) Chocolate Chunk Cookies

I made these last weekend and they are officially the first thing I baked in the new house. What a joy with so much more counter space. I left the walnuts out because 1.) I didn't have any and 2.) I really just prefer things without nuts. I also used milk chocolate chips instead of the semisweet chocolate chunks. They were still delicious!

1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
1 tsp. coarse salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1-1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup mashed ripe banana (about 1 large)
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
8 oz. semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped into 1/4 inch chunks

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Whisk together flours, salt and baking soda in a small bowl; set aside. Put butter and sugars into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Reduce speed to low. Add egg and vanilla; mix until combined. Mix in banana. Add flour mixture; mix until just combined. Stir in oats, chocolate and walnuts (optional).

Using a 1-1/2 inch ice cream scoop, drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing about 2 inches apart. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway though, until golden brown and just set, 12-13 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks for 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks; let cool completely.